JREF Swift Blog

Lo! Yet one more product has appeared on the US market to befuddle unwary buyers. We now have a small bottle with magical drops that are said – in glowing testimonials – to eliminate those small “skin tags” that so often appear in obscure parts of the aging human body, minor benign “flaps” or “bumps” that are technically tumors, but in most cases only annoy the owners. I remember my paternal grandmother as being host to a wide variety of these malfunctions, tiny examples of “intelligent design” that have so far escaped the notice of anti-evolutionists…

This “medicine” is called TagAway, which a gushing review from “SBWIRE” – look it up – says is “jam-packed with organic active ingredients that are derived from pure plant essences.” Wow! And “research analyst” Cindy Walters is quoted as saying:

Instead of risking your health and appearance with skin tag removal formulas that feature harsh, lab-created chemicals, why not enjoy smoother skin by accessing the power of holistic TagAway?

Umm, I tried looking up “research analyst” Cindy Walters, and found not one instance, in her “research” on products such as Diet Solution Problem, Fitbit, GameFly, No-No Hair Removal, Rushfit, Tapout XT, and Teeter Hang Ups – whatever these might be – where Cindy had anything but effusive and total acceptance of the claims that have been made. I suspect that TagAway is tucked under her huge umbrella, as well. Or, dare we suggest, Cindy Walters is known to approve of any product submitted to her for examination?

But back to TagAway… The ads for these magic drops states that the liquid takes “21 to 56 days” to work, but the company’s “money back guarantee” is only for 30 days… The product site says that Tagaway “does not contain any chemicals,” but that would include all gasses, solids, and liquids – everything from which all matter is comprised, an impossible claim! But then the makers list the “active ingredients” of Tagaway, which are: thuja occidentalis (cedar leaf oil), metaleuca altenifolia leaf oil, and ricinus communis seed oil. The first ingredient listed is used in the manufacture of insecticides, room sprays, and hair preparations, and it has been used to treat: back pain, bad dreams, cancer, depression, enlarged prostate, fevers, gas, gonorrhea, growths, hemorrhoids, impaired thinking, insomnia, irritability, joint pain, mouth pain, muscle pain, rashes, runny nose, sadness, shaking chills, sores in the nose, tiredness, toothache, warts, and watery stool. However, it is also listed as “poisonous,” and the American Cancer Association [ACA] says that it “is not recommended for any medicinal use.” The second “active ingredient” – another leaf oil that is important in “aromatherapy,” which should raise our antennae quite a bit – is used to treat fungal infections such as Athlete’s Foot, and head lice, but is similarly designated as “toxic,” and the third – a seed oil – is simply the once-familiar laxative known as castor oil…

Ah, but notice that these substances are present in “homeopathic” amounts, zero, which means that consuming an entire package every few minutes would not affect the consumer in any way, positively or negatively!

Okay. Though I expect total silence and retreat from TagAway, just as we expect from every commercial product that claims magical qualities, here’s the JREF challenge:

Prove that TagAway works as advertised, and the James Randi Educational Foundation (JREF) will award our long-standing million-dollar prize [MDP] to the manufacturer or to anyone who provides the proof. As with all matters related to the MDP, affidavits, endorsements, or testimonials are not accepted, only evidence provided by properly-designed, agreed-upon, protocol, will suffice. The challenge rules can be found here.